


Those Who Stays

by High King Fen (HighKingFen)



Series: To days gone by [3]
Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt, F/F, Fingering, First Kiss, Hurt/Comfort, Loneliness, Nipple Licking, Self-Doubt, parenting, tags will be updated as the story unfold
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-29
Updated: 2019-06-28
Packaged: 2019-12-26 09:02:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 18,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18279989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HighKingFen/pseuds/High%20King%20Fen
Summary: The Children of Earth were gone for 8 months, leaving Fen, Arielle and Rupert alone in Whitespire.Eight long monthsSo much can happen while waiting





	1. Fen

  
The children of earth had been gone for three weeks now. Not that it was worrisome, they had been gone much longer than that. It was becoming second nature for Fen to see them come and go at the whim of their adventure, taking her world, her home, as a mere backdrop of their adventurous life. The only person who stayed there most of the time was Eliot, and it was because he had been forced by the Gods to stay.

Acting High King Fen was woken up by the ray of sunlight, as it was every morning. She used to stay in bed longer, but she wanted to make Margo proud and took her role seriously. There were a thousand things to do and to discuss for the good of Fillory and it felt nice to know that she had a direct impact to help. For once, people were listening. And it was strange.

She heard a sigh next to her and saw Arielle waking up, stretching in the silk sheet of the bed. It didn’t take them more than a day to share a bed, as their husbands were gone on a dangerous quest. Fen enjoyed not being lonely but she could see the Fillorian’s distress and a presence was the only thing that she could give. Despite having had a wild night in a foursome with their husbands included, sharing the bed had been purely platonic for them. Mostly talking until sleep took over, sometimes pretending she didn’t hear Arielle cry when she thought she was asleep. But Fen understood; she had been prepared all her life to be in Whitespire and wife of a king and the change had been drastic and hard on her, she couldn’t imagine what it was for this mother who used to live in the past and had a calm life as a farm girl. So she let her cry in private, promising to force Quentin and Eliot to spend time with her and Rupert when they will be back.

‘’ Good morning,’’ yawned Arielle, her eyes still filled with sleep.  
‘’You can go back to sleep, it is early,’’ Fen said, getting up the bed, tidying up her hair before going to get breakfast.  
‘’ It’s alright. By the time you come back, your handmaids will be around to help you get ready for the day, and they aren’t the quietest in the land.’’

Fen laughs, agreeing. She adored the girl that dressed and helped her with her hair, she had been an emotional and psychological support when her husband and the high queen hadn't. Olive was amazing at listening when she needed, but also gossiped about the castle’s workers’ drama when she had needed a distraction. And now that she had asked if she could be Rupert’s personal nanny, she had only been happier to report the goofs of the toddler while dressing Fen and pointing out Arielle how to do her own hair or ordering her new dresses. Olive might not be Fen’s personal maiden anymore, but she trusted no one to fix her style. Especially when it had become clear that High Queen -now King- Margo valued a good fashion statement around a male-dominated political system.

‘’I’ll go get Rupert,’’ Arielle said, following Fen’s example and doing a quick braid in her hair before putting a silk robe that was proper enough for wandering around the castle to the kitchen. ‘’Could you ask for food for him too?’’

It was the small thing that made Fen’s broken heart heal slowly but surely. Like Arielle not saying what Rupert should eat and trusting her that, whatever she asked, it will be fine. She might not be his biological mother, but Rupert was hers as well.

Fen went to the small room near the kitchen that most of the staff used for eating during slower hours, and where Fen, Eliot and Margo had taken a liking to go eat when they didn’t want to eat near the throne room; it had an intimacy that always had made the royals more relaxed and loose with their comments. It always was her favorite dinner with them.

She arrived to see Eloise and Rafe talking, finishing their meal, visibly engrossed in their conversation. It was only when a maid bowed to Fen and asked her what she wanted to eat that the two Fillorians stop talking and stood up from their chair. Fen waved a hand nonchalantly, trying to hide the blush creeping on her cheek.

‘’You don’t have to do that when we are not in public, you know, ‘’ she said, sitting next to them.

She thanked the maid who brought her a coffee with the beans they had brought from Earth. Eliot had complained about a lot of thing he was missing from his world, but coffee was indeed way better there.

‘’We know. We just don’t listen,’’ Rafe said, a smile on his lips.  
‘’Some of the staff might need a reminder of your position,‘’ Eloise added.  
‘’As there been any problem with someone?’’ asked the acting king, surprised.  
‘’Some. We think they are spies of the FU Fighters that stayed in the palace,’’ Eloise said after making sure no one was around. ‘’ I think they wanted to see if the council really took order from you or if it was just smoke and mirrors. Abigail was pretty vocal about where our loyalty belongs.’’

The fact that not only the council member had been patient while she was getting use to her new role, but now defended her touched Fen to the core. After the betrayal of Tick -which she hated to see in the council but it had been Margo’s choice and she couldn’t do anything about it- she always saw the council as people who were waiting their time to be on the throne. But visibly it wasn’t that. If the gods were still alive, she would have thank them to be so well surrounded.

Like it was planned, Arielle and Rupert arrived in the room. The little prince had a recent fixation on Eloise and almost threw himself out of his mother’s arm to find the Fillorians. Laughter filled the room and the bit of tension in the room left completely. Fen decided she would worry about the return of potential spies in the castle after she ate breakfast.

 

******  
It had been a surprise when an official request from The Library came to the throne room in the middle of the afternoon. Last time Fen had talk to one of them, they had been stealing fairies which had ended up in The Fairy Queen sacrificing herself for the greater good. They had been informal, twisted and unkind. The polite request to an official audience sounded too good not to be a trap. But the acting king agreed to see them after dinner. She had plenty of time before, but she wanted them to wait. Because she could.

 _You have power over people now, make them remember who is the boss,_ had been one of the last things Margo had reminded her.

Rupert had asked to be fed by her during diner, another balm on her soul. Arielle was talking about giving Olive some time off tonight and put Rupert to sleep herself when Fen heard herself ask to come with her at the Library meeting.

She couldn’t explain why, but she had a feeling the fillorian had to be there with her. Not only as her adviser, but as the wife of Quentin. She knew one of the Penny was tied up with them, so it might be important. Now, if it was the Penny from this timeline or the other one that fled, she was not sure. Julia had explained it to her and honestly most of it had went over her head. All she knew was one of them was now working for The Library. Hopefully it would be him, giving them news from their loved one.

So here Fen was, trying to sit right and proud on the throne of the High King of Fillory, a less ornate chair next to her was for Arielle who had let her son go fall asleep with the help of a maid. She could feel anxiety coming from the mother, and she was not sure if it was due to the upcoming meeting or because it was still hard for her to let a stranger do her job as a mother. Either way, both reason were valid.

Fen was about to say something to calm her down when three men and a women entered the room, all dressed in gray as the uniform of the Library dictated it. She didn’t know any of them. Which was a good thing; the last thing she wanted was to talk with the tall black haired men that had cause the lost of the leader of the Fairy nation.

‘’High King Fen,‘’ Said the brunette lady, doing a simple bow, her elbow stuck to her side, her hand in the air. She turned toward Arielle. ‘’My lady.’’ once again she bowed and put a smile as fake as it could on her lips. ‘’Thank you for your quick answer.’’  
‘’I am always please to talk with The Library when the use the formal channels and do not harm any of my citizens,’’ Fen said, in what she hope to be a cold voice. She tried to push away the feeling that it was a mean thing to say, trying to repeat to herself to do what Margo would do.  
‘’Yes. Well. This... incident had been handled properly. We extend our apology to you.’’

This was so formal even Tick would find this a bit too much of a suck up.

‘’What do you want exactly?’’ She finally said.  
‘’We are here to negotiate the return of magic to your land,’’ said the tall girl, taking a manila folder from the hand of one of the tall man next to her. ‘’With some restriction, of course. But I have good faith that we can have an agreement.’’

Fen’s hand on the arm of her chair sunk into the wood as she was trying to gather the information. Arielle almost jumped out of her seat and decided to talk despite not having the right to do in these kinds of meeting.  
‘’Magic is back?’’ Exclaimed Arielle, her eyes brighter than they ever been since her husband had left. ‘’They did it? They fixed it?’’  
‘’I am not sure who _they_ refers to,’’ The lady librarian said, fixing her glasses and not looking in Arielle’s direction. ‘’ Irene McAlistair found a passage to the backdoor of magic and fought bravely to give us access back to magic. She had given to us the responsibility to give it back properly and to insure the good use of it as we do not want it to be gone again. The Library....’’

Fen had stop listening for a second and looked at Arielle’s face. It had gone from pure joy to cold guarded hurt. Fen felt her heart being stabbed by the news as well. She had to force herself to go back and listen to the conversation and not drift into her own anxious mind.

Arielle left when Fen and the librarians started to negotiate the small details about ambient magic and other form of usage.

It was pass over midnight when the librarians left, not having completely drafted the accord, but agreeing to meet over the rest by the afternoon tomorrow. Fatigue had took over the acting king’s brain and she barely undressed before crashing into her bed.

Olive woke her up the morning after, way past her normal hours, a small smile on her lips. She told her she needed to eat and get ready as The Library was due to be back in a few hours; she still needed to talk to the council about potential problems they should avoid. It was only after her second cup of coffee and as Olive was placing her curls into a bun that Fen realized she had not seen Arielle at all since she left the throne room. Her exhausted mind had barely register that the mother had not been in bed.

‘’She went to the harbor with Rupert this morning,’’ Olive said, her face too neutral for Fen to be able to read anything. ‘’I had to remind her to take some guards with her, she should be back soon.’’

This excursion puzzled Fen for the rest of her morning. When Arielle didn’t show up at the council meeting, it worried her. Yet she had work to do and did listen to the concerns and advices of those who had to give her some.

As everyone had a break for lunch, Fen heard that Arielle and Rupert were back and, with the direction of a guard that had followed them in the morning, she found both of them in Whitespire garden. Near the tree Alice’s first body was buried. It was now a lovely tree that provided shade to a bench near the wall of the castle. It felt like a lifetime ago when she had to order people to bury the fallen queen.

The moment Fen sat on the bench next to Arielle, the mother turned to look at her, holding her sleeping son close to her chest. Fen’s heart broke when she saw the woman’s face full of tears. A feeling of dread and anxiety took upon her. What had happen?

‘’I went to the harbor to see if the Muntjac was back,’’ Sobbed Arielle. ‘’And it was. Fen the ship is back. And it’s empty. None of them ever came back.’’

Fen felt the world around her shatter.


	2. Arielle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arielle distress over the quester missing as one more hidden layers.

The first few days of the Muntjac being back without passenger had put Arielle in the same pain numbness than when she had miscarried. She woke up, ate, talked, took care of Rupert, cried in the bath, pretended to be asleep before Fen came in, woke up, repeat. There was a dark hole that had burst through her chest that none of the soothing and reassuring words of people around her could ever understand. Every breath she took, every moment her mind was not busy, it felt like an iced knife dug into her heart and went deeper and deeper. 

Fen refused to declare them dead. For many good reasons. But Arielle didn’t want to listen and hope for any of them. Eliot and Quentin had promised her to come back. And they haven’t. She was now stuck in a time that was so far in the future she knew no one, pretending to be a lady of Whitespire when she only was a farm girl, wishing she had buried that stupid golden tile that had ripped her family apart. 

Through a lot of questions and difficulty of understanding, the restless Muntjac made it clear that it had been sending back by someone, saying the group would go home in another way, that they were needed on Earth first. This was the first clue that they didn’t die. That Irene woman that saved magic might still be working with them and teaming up to improve things. But this explanation felt wrong, like wishful thinking, grasping at a bit of hope where there was none; Quentin would never send back an empty boat without making sure that they were safe. Eliot had promised to be back. He’d promise. 

The second clue that they might be alive was the bunnies. They were something new in Arielle’s life, only having used them for communication since she had moved in with Eliot and Quentin. They liked how fast they could carry messages, and the boys were not found of the fillorian way of sending letters by birds or simple mail. It was slower, but easier when you had a message that was more than four words. Fen had explained to her that bunnies were good at finding senders across the worlds. Even if they were dead. So when each bunny they sent was a return to sender and not a sender not available, it had been good news. Apparently. 

‘’Return to sender mostly happen when strong magic is blocking them to work it out. ‘’ Abigail had explained through Rafe translation. ‘’Availability for bunnies is a way for them to say they do not go in the Underworld. It’s one of the rare places they aren’t able to reach someone. Return to sender happens when they had located the person, but were not able to give the message successfully.’’ This should have calmed down Arielle, but she remembered that Margo had had the same problem when she had tried to contact Eliot while he had been in the past doing the mosaic with Quentin and her — creating a family together. If they were gone in time once again, who knew for how long; It had taken them five years and a lot of sacrifices to come back. What if they arrived in Whitespire, aged and with another family, another wife, another kid. 

‘’If they are stubborn enough to work on an impossible task for years to get back to the present to see Margo and Julia, they would do the same thing for Rupert and you.’’ Fen had said after she had finally coaxed an answer for her new set of tears. 

That did calm Arielle. Fen was right on that point. 

Before leaving, Arielle had taken her husband‘s phone and ask Eliot and Quentin to make a video wishing goodnight to Rupert and singing him a song. She had forced them to do it, so if he claims them, he could hear their voice and see their face. She had tried to use the file as little as she could, knowing the phone didn’t have limitless energy. The last time she used it before it refuses to open was the night before Rupert turned one. Seated in a rocking chair, holding her baby boy near her heart, she listens to both men laugh and goof around and sing one of Rupert’s favourite lullaby. Then the phone went black. Rupert was upset that he could not see them again, but she managed to make him fall asleep with the same song, now sang by his mother. She kept the useless machine on her bed stand, hoping that now with magic back it would get a new boost of energy. 

It hadn't. 

When Rupert first birthday arrived, Arielle numbness transformed into an intense and profound sadness she never imagined she could ever feel. Her soul felt like it had been taken over by ice and she felt nothing but anger and sadness. It took her a very long bath to calm herself down when she saw how much of an event Fen was making of it. Maybe she felt terrible that Rupert’s dads were gone or she was overcompensating for the daughter she’d lost, but she had ordered a feist where everyone in Whitespire was invited as well as their loved one; it was a banquet for the first year of the new prince of Fillory. Three tier peach cake was ordered as the desert and Rupert was put in his best attire. The little prince adores the attention and ate more than he should, which only worried Arielle since she was scared he would not sleep well that night. Olive was sleeping next to his room in case he cried, but it felt wrong to give everything this child wanted and make others suffer. 

The moment she could, Arielle had fled the banquet and rage in silence against Fen for making this moment a happy thing while Eliot and Quentin were missing. It was not fair. They should not be happy and laughing. They should worry and continue to investigate their wear-about. The council was saying they had their best spies and beast on the project, but she doubted they would bring any news. If bunnies could not access them, why would some magical creature and stealthy human could? 

She changed from her expensive dress and undid the complicated braid she had in her hair and fetch a shirt into her bottomless basket. This was one of Quentin’s shirt he used to wear when they were living at the cottage. It smelled like him. She sobbed into the fabric for a moment before putting it on her skin. She’d hope it felt like the caress of her lover; it felt nothing like it. 

‘’ ‘Elle?’’ The voice of Fen inquired from the bedroom; Arielle having wandered on the balcony to look at the moons. 

She wishes the gods would still be alive. She always found comfort into prayers and talking to them. This was another piece of her soul that had been taken away from her. 

‘’ Hey,’’ Fen said, her eyes glossy and her cheek pink. ‘’Olive wanted you to know that Rupert fell asleep while she was putting him in his nightwear. You have nothing to worry about.’’She clearly had drank a lot tonight, which was not her habit. And having live with Eliot had made her tune in to the quiet distress that drinking would show. Was the acting High King hurting as much as her, and this birthday was only a facade for the court? Or was she in need of forgetting

Arielle cursed herself for being mad at Fen all day. Because both of those reasons were good enough to drink. After all, she too was left behind by the Children of Earth. And more than once. 

‘’I expect him to have a tummy ache all night or the fullest diaper tomorrow morning.’’ Arielle tried to tease, but could only say in a half smile

Fen was drunk since she giggled at that. 

Both women leaned on the fence of the balcony. They shared the heaviest silence that ever happens between them. 

‘’I know you are upset but-’’  
‘’I’m pregnant.’’

Arielle had blurted out this hidden truth as an apology. It was awkward and not how she had wanted to tell Fen. But it was a part of her she needed to say to her so she could fully understand her agony of losing her husband. 

‘’W.... what?’’ Fen said, blinking rapidly.   
‘’I learned it the day they left,’’ Arielle said, filling her eyes watered and a sob building in her throat. ‘’And I couldn’t tell Quentin, because he would have stayed behind, and whatever he said he is the leader of the quest to save magic. Everyone looks up to him and El when it is time to decide what to do. He would have put magic on hold longer because of me and....’’

The sob finally left her mouth, and Fen took her in her arm and hugged her strong and hard, her hand going up and down her back. 

‘’I told Eliot. And we both agree we would tell Q when they would be back. ‘’ Arielle said in the crook of the neck of the only friend she had in this stupid world. ‘’He took my face in his hand and promised me to be back and bring Quentin back with him. He promised Fen.’’ 

Fen was speechless and did not expect this from Arielle, she could tell it. Was it the news of her pregnancy or the broken promise Eliot had given her that surprised her? That was another story. One she had no emotional capacity to explore. 

‘’I don’t know when it happened. But since we got back to the future, Quentin had been so worried that I would stop loving him because he was gone on the quest that each night, each moment together, we...’’  
‘’Eliot told me you two were like bunnies.’’  
‘’More or less.’’ Arielle laughed through her tears. ‘’Quentin is not always good at saying how he loves you, but he always does those little act of loves... and since we saw each other so infrequently, I think it was his idea of telling me I love you. ‘’

Arielle wiped her eyes, feeling like the weight of the worlds were gone from her shoulder. She had told herself she would keep the secret until Quentin knew, but it had become too hard to endure. She should have told Fen the moment the Muntjac came back empty. The few weeks of anxious agony she had lived had been a nightmare she never experiences before. 

‘’Did you wanted to grow your family?’’ Asked kindly Fen, visibly trying to sober up from the conversation and failing. God, she wishes she could drink too.   
‘’Yes, but not like this. Before we move to this...forward in time, Quentin had assured me that once magic would get back on, we would settle for something quiet again. And raise a family. Clearly, he didn’t said that to Eliot since now Rupert is a prince and we live in Whitespire.’’ 

Fen hand on her back and the cold air calmed Arielle enough that she was able to stop the tears from overflowing her cheek. She was not done hurting by the disposition of her husband, but she was done doing it alone. 

‘’ I am going to be selfish and admit that I am glad that, for once, Eliot listen to nobody. ‘’ Fen admitted. ‘’One of the main reason I keep my head over the water is the conversation we have at nights and the quiet encouragement you give me in council. I am glad to have you here ‘Elle.’’

It was the first time Fen used her nickname. Something warm and happy tried to peek inside the coldness of her heart. It didn’t stay, but the spark was there. And if Quentin and Eliot were ready to believe that magic could come back from Julia’s magical spark, maybe her joy would too come back one day. Maybe. 

‘’You should give yourself more credit,’’ Arielle said. ‘’You are strong and have amazing ideas, and you know what to do to make the life of small folks way better. The crop sharing plan you had asked to be drafted is amazing. ‘’

Fen smile, her cheek pinker as Arielle complimented her, stars in her light. Had anyone ever told her how much of a strong woman she was? Or were all the woman in this future time were so stubborn and ready to fight for what they thought was right? Had Margo influence her to speak her mind or did the fillorian was already the kind of person that would remind Tick that he should stop talking about the farmers like a second class citizen. 

Arielle always prides herself in being a strong woman of her time; having a large family and taking care of the house after her mother died had toughened up her skin and made her able to do many things most woman wouldn’t do. Yet, it had been a struggle for her to accept that Quentin and Eliot wanted to share the chores and to cook inside the house. They had made her believe that she could be a wife and not being defined by it. They tried the same discourse when she saw herself as a mother first, but they had not convinced her that her role in life was to take care and love Rupert. Even after accepting Olive’s help, Arielle felt like a bad mother for giving her son away for a few hours. Yet, Fen had acted like it was normal to ask a stranger to take care of your child while you were doing other things. 

It was amazing to think that, as progressive as she always thought she was, Arielle was not near as open-minded and altruistic as Fen. And she tried to tell her that. To make her understand that she was one of the stronger women she ever saw, and didn’t have to win her subject’s respect by the heel of a blade as Queen Yana had done, or by inspiring fear like High King Margo did — Does —Will — continue to do. If, when, she comes back. 

Halfway to her speech, Arielle was stopped by Fen lips on her. It was not chaste and yet not filled with lust. It felt like an act of gratitude. She could feel the Acting King had needed to be reminded of her grandeur. She felt Fen armour fade away to show this vulnerability she didn’t allow the member of the council to see. This was the kind of loving kiss she shared with Eliot. 

And feeling vulnerable herself, needing to feel a presence next to her and allowing this woman to be part of her life even more, and not just because she had to, Arielle answered the kiss. It was slow, it was nice, it was soft. That kiss led to several more during the night. That kiss, link them as partners in life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for your comment and encouragement. I hope you enjoy! Kudos and Comments are my life and bread!


	3. Fen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fen gets angry, Arielle reads Game of Thrones

If Arielle had been quick at denying any possibility of the Children of Earth to be gone, it at taken a few weeks before fen realized she was doing it too, in her own way. Contrary to her partner, Fen had been used to the coming and going of this strange group of people that were chosen by the gods to be their leaders. 

She had almost lost Eliot once as she was five months pregnant and had live through the panic of the idea of raising a child alone as a widow. She was not sure she still fully forgave Margo for the deal she made on her behalf, but the pain of it was now a dull ache she was used to live with and not this agonizing sadness she had live with when she learned the death of her daughter. She still remembers so clearly how it felt like a punch in the stomach and how she’d fallen on the floor as Eliot had held her. And until this memory and this pain fade away, she will never be able to forgive Margo fully. Who knows what would have happened if the Fairies wouldn’t have played with her. Would Rupert have a sister to play with? 

All of it to say, Fen had been used to the idea of losing any of them. What she didn’t expect was a pure terror and the sadness of it all. She had grown attached to Eliot and Margo in more than one way. And having Arielle and Rupert around had made their family even bigger; they had to come back for a bigger reason than a kingdom and self-preservation. They had to come back to their family. 

This is why Fen put all of her energy into being an Acting King; by being busy all day, she didn’t have time to worry about the days going by without any news of anyone. It was without surprise that Whitespire intelligence had come up empty from trying to find clues, and they were now trying to convince the Muntjac to do a second ride in Blackspire to find out what happened. The boat was so reluctant that it was hard not to imagine the worst of it all. 

When the FU Fighters started to rebel about Margo’s long absence and rumour of unrest in Loria was getting to them, Fen sent Tick and some of his agent to the border to learn about it more. It also felt better to have him far from the castle; why did Margo and Eliot had forgiven his treason was unclear, but if Fen had her way, he would have died by her hand, by a blade she would have made especially for him. 

Being a King wasn’t as easy as Eliot and Margo were pretending it to be in front of their friend. It was a lot of work, reading, redaction and daily decision which had an impact on a whole kingdom. It was, and she did lose sleep over worries farmers and merchant had raised; magic was back, but it had not fixed all of their problems. The library was barely giving them enough to grow crops, the magical school near her old house had to reduce the number of students because they didn’t have enough magic for everyone to use and let’s not talk about the little rebellion against the fairies and their capacity to do magic despite it all. 

‘’You should go there,’’ Arielle said one night, as Fen was explaining the reason for her recent insomnia. 

Both women were in beds. Tucked under warm blankets, the fireplace crackling, Fen reading request for the King as Arielle was reading a book from Quentin’s collection. Before they came here, Quentin had put most of his Earth belonging in the infinite basket Eliot had enchanted for her what seemed a lifetime ago. In it were some of his favourite books saga and he had told her which to read. After Fillory and Further, she was now reading Game of Thrones which, by the sound of it, was much bloodier and hornier than what real life in a castle was. 

‘’If you want to stay busy and work while Margo is gone, a trip to the Fairies land would be the perfect way to do so.’’  
‘’I should stay at the castle.’’ Fen protested. ‘’We never know when she could come back. And I want to be there when she is.’’  
‘’She wasn’t around for the last four month, I don’t know what a few days would change.’’  
‘’Don’t be like that.’’  
‘’Realist?’’  
‘’No, pessimist. We have no clue where they are, but we would know if they were dead. I am sure of it. Their quest just took longer.’’

Fen looked at Arielle sighing and visibly stopping herself form arguing. If the mother-to-be was starting to lose hope, Fen had decided to be hopeful for both of them. They needed to believe they would come back. They always had even when the odds were against them. 

 

*******

The fairies people were settled in the North East of Fillory, near the Centors' retreat as per High King Margo first decree. The Fairy Queen had walked there with her people and made sure everyone had their place in the land. A small part of the land that had died due to The Beast foul play with magic around that space when his reign of terror on Fillory. It was the perfect place for their mushroom nursery and, probably without knowing, the first act of High King of Margo had saved a species from extinction. 

But now that the magic was back and that there was a semblance of normalcy, Fillorians had started to protest their welcoming to their land. Between people that felt betrayed by the deal to unashamed racism, a lot of complaints that came to Whitespire was how the Fairies had an unlimited amount of magic to fix themselves and their land. 

It was a hard thing for Fen to defend them. To explain that their magic wasn’t coming from the source the Library was holding. That half of their population didn’t even know they could do magic until they were freed from slavery. That they were not privileged by the gods or even nagging the Fillorians with their magic; they were merely trying to survive in a time where no worlds ever wanted them, where they were near extinction, where their land needed as much love and care as any farmer’s crops. 

Fen knew her place as a High King was to defend her people. All of them. And it had been easy when it was a couple of them being kidnapped by over-ambitious librarians. It was another thing where she had to push aside her own story with them to affirm that they were not to be feared and were as much citizen of Fillory as any other magical creature. When a group of angry farmers came to her and complained about them, pointing out that she too should be worried since they were known to double-cross everyone. 

‘’They are not able to hold their deal anymore. Didn’t their last Queen broke one before she died?’’ Asked a merchant, worried that they were close from his families and his child might be taken from him.   
‘’She broke a deal that her mother did that enslave dozen of them. I was there to see it happen; it was her last resort to save her people.’’  
‘’She invaded our land!’’ Protested a farmer whose crops had been taken away for their mushroom-children plantation. Since then Fen had to give him another plot of land to construct his farm, but it didn’t seem enough.   
‘’Which she gave back the moment we assured her protection. She came here because her people, now our citizen, were on the edge of extinction. They didn’t have anywhere to go.’’  
‘’So it should excuse what they did to us? To Fillory? To High King Margo? To your daughter?’’

The merchant that had spoken became white, realizing what he’d just said. Everyone in the room became still. Like time had stopped. Fen looked at Arielle who was listening at the back of the room, next to Heloise and Abigail. A glance that had been the only reason why the few words she spoke after were said in a calm and commanding tone, and not yelling. 

‘’I understand and hear your fear. If it must, I will send someone to talk with them and see if your allegation is true. We have welcomed them as refugees, and I do not think that distrusting them while they are trying to survive is the best thing Fillorians can do. We always welcome those who were wronged by their lands. I refuse to start unrest between our citizen.’’

What would Margo do? What would Julia do? What would Eliot do? 

One would insult, one would listen, one would scheme. The first option was tempting, but for once, she knew she couldn’t take Margo’s route. But she could muster the cold and calm anger the High King was fulled on to continue to speak.

‘’As for my child, I would kindly ask you not to speak of it as you were here or sharing the pain that I have to live every day, knowing that she was gone before her first breath. ‘’ Said Fen coldly. ‘’And if you use her life or my name once again to put fear inside of others heart, it is not the fairy you shall worry about. Am I clear? ‘’

Everyone nodded, Fen dismissed them. Then she asked everyone to leave the room. Everyone but Arielle. When the last person closed the door behind them, Fen got up of the throne and looked at the other woman who had walked to meet her. There was a silence between them that only a mother could understand; one of hurt and betrayal. Arielle took the Acting High King in her arm and did not say a word while she was crying of rage and pain. How could her people put a knife in that wound and twist it like this? How dare they? After all, she was doing for them. 

‘’I’ll go to the fairies,’’ Arielle whispered, playing in her hair, waiting for her to calm down. ‘’I’ll bring Rupert. We will show that the crown does not fear them with children and will listen to their argument.’’ 

Fen pulled out of the embrace and looked at the blond girl in front of her. She felt ashamed of crying and yet so grateful she could. Margo wouldn’t cry for this. But this was why she was only Acting High King, and Margo was the real one. 

‘’It’s my role as a High King-’’ started Fen  
‘’To stay in Whitespire and wait for Margo,’’ Arielle said, interrupting her. ‘’Plus, I think it will be good for Rupert to see the world a bit, people are starting to get used to him here, he needs new eyes to adore him.’’

Fen laughed and smile, Arielle beamed with pride. There was so much to do, so much to say. Fen wished Margo was there to handle it all and she was just there to advise. Fen sincerely hoped Margo was still working on something for the good of Fillory and didn’t flee her duty like some rumour were saying. 

She felt the soft hand of Arielle wiping down her tear. She leaned for a kiss that was not denied. Comfort and tenderness were all she needed to forget this seething anger that the simple reminder of her lost daughter had created. 

****

Later that night, after eating in private, playing with Rupert and tucking him to bed, the girls went to their room. Arielle was humming a fillorian lullaby while helping Fen to undo her complicated hair. The acting High King was calmer now and had been able to continue her duty during the rest of her day without having her emotion dictate her thoughts. Though, part of her had wanted to hide in her room and sharpen her knives like she always did since she was little. To focus on something else than sadness, her father had shown her how to focus on the blade and the wet stone. It had always helped her. But she was not ready to do this in front of Arielle. It was her special thing, her moment that she wanted to share with no-one. 

‘’I haven’t been married to Quentin for two years not to notice when someone is far gone in their head,’’ Arielle said, undoing a braid that had been holding must of her bun in place. ‘’Your crown is off your head now. It is time to relax.’’

The High King crown was indeed on the table in front of them, waiting to be put to give back all the burden of a kingdom. 

‘’ Are you still sure about going to see the fairies?’’ Fen asked, turning toward Arielle once she was done with her hair.   
‘’Yes,’’ Arielle said with an understanding smile. Was it the same smile she gave to Quentin when he told her his anxieties. Gods know he had so many of them. ‘’But no more talking about it today. That’s a tomorrow problem.’’  
‘’But - ‘’

Arielle’s lips stopped Fen's sentence. A simple, tender gesture that gave her a warm feeling in her chest. It was too hard not to answer, not to open her mouth, not to let her tongue explore hers. They had never gone more than this before; they could kiss and cuddle for hours, but nothing more. But something in Fen, maybe the void her earlier meeting had created, wanted more. She cupped her hand on Arielle’s face and deepened the kiss, silently asking permission to go further; after all the only other time anything had happened, their husband was there as well. To Quentin’s great delight. 

The memory of the hungry eyes of Quentin on Arielle and her, while they were kissing, were enough to make Fen even hornier. Arielle answered the kiss by grabbing her by the waist and pushing her slightly over the desk, crooking the mirror a little.

‘’Are you sure?’’ Fen breathed on the woman’s lips when they parted, needing air.   
‘’Shhh.,’’ the blond woman said. ‘’Less thinking, more kissing.’’

Fen blushed and smile, knowing this was a move she must have put on her overthinking husband. Not that she minded that it was used on her this time.   
‘’Let me undress you,’’ Arielle asked.

Shivering, Fen let herself being led on the bed and looked at Arielle that went to blow out some of the torches to give a more familiar sensation to the room. They were both had gotten rid of the ornament that their clothes had required and only wore the fabrics. For the first time in her life, Fen was happy not to wear the pants she had ordered her dressmaker to do and had merely worn one of her dress. Her pants were too snug on her to be something sexy to get rid of. 

Arielle went in front of her on the bed and smile, her cheek as pinks as Fen felt hers. Was she as nervous and excited by this as she was? Her heart skipped a beat when she felt her hand unclasping the right shoulder part of her dress then the other. The fabric felt to her stomach, revealing her perky and erected breast. She felt each part of her skin was touched starved and required more. 

Last time they had touched her, it had been full of sexual desire and discovery. This time it was different. It was the gentle touch of someone that wanted to see her. 

‘’ Tell me if it’s going too far alright?’’ Arielle said, her finger making patterns ups and down her chest without entirely stopping at her breast. Fen nodded, her breath finishing half a second before she inhales. 

Arielle didn’t stop to look at her as her finger went over her breast, her nipple, her curves. She went where the fabric stopped her, and she came back up, this time grabbing her right breast in her hand, her finger playing tentatively with her sensitive nipple. Fen let out a small moan that only made Arielle smile even more and pinch again. 

Fen wanted more, wanted her, wanted...something. But these slow touches were torture she wasn’t sure to survive. She was never touched like that by anyone, not even her husband. He had been kind to her, but never Eliot had shown any curiosity, any reverence, over her body. 

She shivered when Arielle’s hand pulled down the dress further down her hips. She felt a gentle push from the woman, to lie on her back which she did without having to be repeated. Her dress went down her legs and flew to the floor in minutes that felt like hours. Arielle, towering over her, devouring her with her eyes, licking her lips, visibly as into it as Fen was. 

‘’Kiss me.’’ Fen whisper.   
‘’My King’s wishes are my order.’’ Purred Arielle as she lowers herself to kiss her deeply. 

This unexpected yet straightforward sentence drove Fen into a state of lust she rarely felt before. She thought she could come undone merely by the words and the touch of these women. And while they were kissing, she couldn’t help but moan as she felt two hands possessively exploring her body, her side breast, her hips, her legs, her but. She decided to stop caring if anyone would hear them when Arielle’s lips went on her throat and her hands back to her nipples. Soon she was sucking and licking them as well, making the young girl gasp her name out loud for the first time. 

‘’I always wanted to try what Quentin did on you last time,’’ Arielle said between two kisses on her skin. ‘’Can I-’’  
‘’Yes.’’

The eagerness on which she answered made her blush and Arielle laugh and smile with smug pride. She went back into attacking her nipples with her tongue while positioning herself in a more comfortable position for her hand to move on their own. They went lower and found the wet fold that was Fen desire. She almost came when she felt the slow finger starting to search her and see her clitoris; she might have come when she found it and had begun to do small rotation. 

Without stopping, Arielle took one finger and entered her, making Fen growl with lust. She had to take the blond hair girl face and push her towards her so they could kiss and she would stop taking care of her breast. Not that she hated it, but she needed to shove her tongue in her mouth while feeling a second finger entering her and small motion starting to occur inside of her. By the gods, this was good; this was everything. She forgot her worry of the kingdom, her sadness of not knowing where the questers were, her anger towards like for taking away her daughter. All she could think of right now, was Arielle’s finger and her mouth lowering itself toward her belly on the trail of kisses. 

‘’More.’’ She pleaded as she started a motion with her hips to feel Arielle fuck her even more.  
‘’Eager.’’ Teased the woman who added a third finger. 

She gripped blond hairs in her hand as she started to feel a second orgasm coming her way. She swore like a sailor when she felt the three fingers fucking her slowly while Arielle was starting to exploring her clitoris with her tongue. By the humming sound she was making, it was not unpleasant for her either. It took a few more lick and a steady pace of her finger for Fen to scream her name and see starts. 

Arielle stopped, kissing her way up until they kissed again. The salty sweetness she tasted made her shiver, knowing she felt herself. She bites Arielle’s lips as a thank you as she was coming back from one of her strongest orgasms to date. 

‘’What do you want?’’ Fen asked, feeling her partner was way too overdressed. 

She started to fix the problem and undo the knots that were holding her dress together. 

‘’You don’t have to.’’ Arielle breathes over her, closing her eyes when she felt the fabric opening. She could see how much the woman wanted it by the state of her undergarment.   
‘’King’s order. I want you to enjoy yourself too.’’ Purred back Fen. 

Surprised by this and amused, Arielle smile and kissed her, helping her undress and gasping her names as she was touching her. Not even ten minutes later, she had her head between her leg, discovering the sweet taste of her partner, making her squirm with her finger and her tongue. She felt desired; she felt powerful; she felt good. 

Arielle came in a cry as well, and both women kissed, catching their breath after their first time loving each other physically. Their limbs were tangled, Arielle stomach slightly showing her pregnancy, both dishevelled and breathless. 

‘’Was it your first time with a girl?’’ Arielle asked, fixing a lock of hair out of Fen’s eyes.   
‘’Alone...yeah,’’ Fen said, blushing and shivering at the touch.  
‘’Me too.’’ 

This surprised Fen. She didn’t know why, but the confidence that she had shown had made the Acting High King believe that she was experienced in that domain. Though, sharing a bed with Quentin and Eliot for two years must have helped a lot when it came to exploring sex. From what she heard from Margo, Eliot loved exploring new things when it came to sex. Not that it ever happened between them though.   
‘’It was nice.’’ Admitted Arielle, blushing this time. Fen nodded.   
‘’It was long overdue.’’

Both girls laughed in agreement, kissed and sighed. They agreed on a bath since they felt both sweaty, but it took them longer to make the plan at execution. Arielle made Fen come twice before they took it and Fen made her come any time after they did. They ended up falling asleep in each other arm, having fucked until they didn’t have energy. Fen had put a memo on her door asking her maid and her guard to let her rest for the morning, as they had decided to go to bed and fall asleep as the sun was starting to rise.


	4. Arielle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arielle adjust to Whitespire the best she can

In order to busy herself, Arielle took upon herself the project of writing the story of Quentin and Eliot. They had told her about their time in Brakebills and about The Beast and about Fillory. She had taken note, wanting to remember everything for Rupert who was just just a few week old. She had wanted to remember every moments that lead to them coming to this time and place in Fillory and deciding to stay, creating their own little family.

In the pile of books Quentin had put in her bottomless basket, there was his copy of Fillory and Further. He had several of them, which seemed strange but they probably meant something to him. If, when, he comes back, she will ask him. The books, while entertaining and easy to read, were depicting Fillory in a way that had nothing to do with what the land was. She was not sure because the author was writing the view of children who couldn’t grasp the complexity of the land, or because it was the retelling of someone remembering something, but there was many inaccuracy. At one point, she even had to stop and ask Fen if an event had happen for the rainbow bridge to apparently bloom all the time; back in her time, it only bloomed if Royalty approached or the Gods had a message and wanted you to cross the land into the sacred beach.

‘’It is still the same.’’ Assured the Acting High King with a soft smile. But then she frown, visibly thinking. ‘’Well it was. I am not sure if it is still happening now that Ember and Umber are gone. This is a really good question.’’

Once again, Arielle tried to repress deep the thought that her husband killed the deity she had prayed her whole life. It was for the greater good or something like this. Still. Even if they were gone, Arielle was still praying to them before diner and when she seeked answer. Now she just knew they would never answer or give a sign.

All of that to say, that after reading the awful depiction of Fillory and missing her husband so much she had started to sleep in his shirt since it smelled like him, Arielle had started to write the adventure of Eliot and Quentin.

Since it was something quiet and required to stay in the same room for a long amount of time, she told Olive that she could get some time for herself and that she would look after her son. The dark skin girl was grateful to have this impromptu vacation and ask permission to go see her family in Loria. Arielle was floored by the reminder that this girl needed to request her leaving away form the castle. There are things in life that you never get use to, the young mother believed that her new status in Fillory will be one. She assured her aid that she would manage the journey to the Fairies land and both agree to meet back there, since it was nearer to the border of Loria.

Spending time with Rupert was a soothing medicine over the wound that Quentin and Eliot’s absence created. He had his biological father’s eyes and only fell asleep to song Eliot use to sing to him. With magic back, though restricted, Arielle had asked if there would be a way to revive the telephone where they had left him a message, but so far nobody came up with a solution. It wasn’t an object from this world; it was hard to find someone that would know what kind of magic it responds to. 

Sure, keeping a 13 months old baby around kept Arielle from writing without interruption, but the whole idea was to be distracted and surrounded by her family. Plus, she hated the idea that Rupert spends more time with Olive than her. She wanted to be the kind of mother that would be there for her child despite her duties. Her grief might have blinded her from that goal. The fear of being pregnant too. And she needed to get back up. Last time she had two men to support her through her pregnancy. Now she had Fen and Rupert. She was not alone like her grief wanted her to believe. 

‘’Mama,’’ Rupert said, happily seeking her arm as she turned to see him. 

Water in her eyes, Arielle picked up her son and took him in her harm, almost crushing him with all of her force simply to show how much she loved him. He had started to do sound a month ago, but lately, he had associate mama to her. Mommy was Fen. Without the phone, it was hard to know if he understood, but they had tried to make him say daddy for Quentin and papa for Eliot. Their choice, not hers. She was not sure if Rupert would be able to associate those name to them, but it warmed her heart to know that, despite giving him hours at a time to Olive, Rupert still considered her like her mother. That his love towards her had not changed at all. 

Olive name was ‘Liv from Rupert’s language, usually understanding that his mothers needed to work or he needed to go to bed. Both of the time, he didn’t want to go but after many kisses agreed to go away. But not today. Not this week. 

‘’Mama was thinking of doing a trip to see the fairies with you. What do you think?’’ Arielle asked, holding him on her hips. ‘’We will travel around Fillory in a carriage! Mommy never went into one. So it will be a first for both of us.’’

Rupert didn’t answer, he visibly understood simple concepts like his parents, colours and animals, but asking his opinion about a diplomatic trip was still a bit too hard for him. He nestled against her and yawn, despite having done a long nap not long ago and closed his eyes. 

‘’Tired?’’

Rupert nodded and dropped the Teddy Bear plushie Eliot had bought the first time he went to town after Arielle had given birth. It had been his favourite to sleep with since then.

Without missing a beat, Arielle bent and grabbed his son toy, walked away from the desk she used to write and went to her bedroom. She had asked for her rocking chair to be moved there while Olive was gone; Rupert would sleep with Fen and her at night, Arielle was unable to know him alone in a room where she couldn’t hear if he cried. 

Sitting in the rocking chair, Arielle gave her son his favourite plushie. On her laps, he settled more comfortably, putting his fist into his mouth and looking at her with the same eyes that Quentin had. Those full of love and wonder. She started to sing a lullaby until her son fell asleep against her. She continued to rock until she too fell asleep, her last thought about looking if he was teething since he hadn't sucked his fist in a long time.

*****  
Fen had told Arielle that it was natural that a baby his age needed to sleep, especially after having a growth spurt as he had in the past few days. And she told her it was alright that she felt tired too and needed to nap more; maybe it was a way for her body to say to her to slow down and grieve her husband. But Arielle knew too much about Quentin’s depression not to be worry by an early sign of it towards her. Could this vile melancholy touch her baby as well? Could Rupert sense the unnatural absence of his father after all? Fen had felt sleepier lately too. So maybe it wasn’t that. Perhaps it was the constant rain and gloominess of the weather. 

 

Arielle tried to believe it. She didn’t. But she hoped it would be. 

‘’Everyone in the castle is a bit groggy lately,’’ Fen said one afternoon as they were walking in the garden. 

After admitting she was missing a simpler life where she was cooking and doing her garden, Fen had suggested she could tend to the garden in Whitespire. Of course, they had people working for them to do that, but it never was something Margo or Eliot truly cared of embellishing and it could be an excellent way to wait for them to be back. Fen optimism was almost contagious. Arielle had agreed. Between writing, the garden and the meeting of the throne, her day would be busy enough that she would go to bed too physically exhausted to stay awake and think. 

‘’Something like that happened too the first weeks magic was gone.’’ The Acting High King said. ‘’Something to do with God power and the amount of magic in the air or something. Eloise had made a report on it. Maybe there is not enough to the land; the library is only giving us the bare minimum after all.’’  
‘’Did we got more complaints about the limitation?’’ Arielle asked, worried. People in Fillory were not happy with the state of magic when it was back. Abigail had compared it to giving a cup of water to a thirsty man; it soothes the immediate but does not fix the problem.   
‘’Yes. Tick went to request another meeting with the library. Hopefully, we get the same woman; she seemed aware of who we were and the situation of the kingdom.’’

Arielle hated the Library. Because they knew more than they were letting in, she had the conviction that they knew where the questers were and their silence was as much as an insult as their lie about never seeing them. It did not fit the story the Muntjac gave them. The boat had said a librarian came and assured it could go home, that the others needed to go on Earth for a moment. 

That was the only clue they had about where any of them could be. And the Library was denying it. If it weren’t endangering the hard-earn magic the land had, Arielle would give a piece of her mind to those gray-suit assholes. 

She needed to put that resentment away; it was not productive and would only cause problems. Going on a trip away from it all might do her some good after all. When she learned her mother’s death, she had fleed in the forest for a moment before seeking comfort to Lunk. When needing to cool off during a fight with Quentin or Eliot, she always walked away for a moment to calm down. At the castle, she had Fen’s comfort, but maybe she needed to be somewhere else for a while. It always worked before. 

What she didn’t expect was how complicated it was to go to the fairies while being on Royal duty. Not only she had to go with guards and escort, but she and Rupert also had now to dress like their rank, meaning lavish fabric and complicated gowns. Not for Rupert, his diaper had to be accessible rapidly at any time. But that didn’t stop the royal seamstress from putting Arielle in dresses that had layers and lace and corset. 

‘’Margo would never want to be seen as anything else than regal and powerful.’’ Said Fen while helping her to find the proper outfit to bring away with her. ‘’I know you like simpler things, but we represent the crown, and so we represent what Margo is. Maybe lets compromise and do simpler dress but with accessories? Let’s not do the purple one because it’s too cumbersome if you need to do long walks, but what about this blue one?’’

Arielle couldn’t care less of what she wore. Not that she didn’t like fashion, but it was a different thing to care about how you dress as the daughter of a peach farmer or the wife of a magician and how you should dress like a lady of the court in Whitespire. But apparently. Now she had to care because she would represent the crown. 

By the hairy balls of the gods, how did she end up here? 

The of her departure after, Arielle woke up to Fen small giggle as Rupert was in her arm, pulling on one of her long dishevelled hair. Her son smile was wide and full of love, and if it weren’t that Fen was so loving and caring, Arielle would feel jealous of this small moment of happiness between the two of them. But instead, she got something else. She felt her aching heart being soothed; being reminded that whatever might happen, her son will grow in a house full of love.

‘’Sorry did we wake you up?’’ Fen asked after noticing her. Arielle turned on her side, looking at what was left of her family and smile slightly. It was not complete, but at least, she was not alone in this complicated new world. This might still be Fillory, but it wasn’t her Fillory. Not yet. She was working on it. 

Plus, part of her couldn’t stop thinking how beautiful Fen was in her silk nightgown; flowy so to be comfortable but form fitting enough that she could see the curve of her breast and her erect nipple. God she would need to kiss them and make the Acting King moan one last time before she left. 

‘’It’s alright, what time is it?’’ She asked, sleep in her voice.   
‘’Early enough to go back to bed.’’   
‘’I- ‘’   
‘’No arguing. Rupert and I will have breakfast together, and you sleep. I won’t see him for a week, so let me kidnap him a bit.’’

This made Arielle chuckle, and she nodded. Fen leaned to kiss her head but Arielle tilted her face up, and the woman understood she wanted to be kissed on the lips. Their kiss was slow and soft. She felt Rupert hand grabbing her hair as well. This was the kind of tender moment she used to have with Quentin and Eliot at the cottage. This almost felt like home.


	5. Fen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fen is alone in Whitespire for the first time in months.

Fen knew that having a bit of time alone would be great for both her and Arielle. What she didn’t expect to happen so fast was how much she missed her and Rupert. They were gone not even for two days, and she felt the castle was much emptier than when Margo and the other quester went away in their trip to Blackspire. Without Arielle calming presence and Rupert cries of joy, it felt like part of the soul of Whitespire was missing now.

I didn’t even take a year, and she went from hostile to this girl from the past to growing deep feeling toward her. And it had happened way before they had started sleeping together. Fen had realized her heart skipping when she saw Arielle getting dressed, how some of her touches had let her goosebumps, how she needed to find her in the throne room to be reassured she was not destroying Margo’s legacy.

And after three years of complete indifference by Eliot and two years of sexual frustration, having someone that reciprocated somehow how you felt and your attraction was a breath of fresh air. That was what made her crazy even more in fact. When Arielle reached for her hand or kissed her, it felt natural, like they have been doing it for years. And yet, it had only been a few months.

She finally understood Quentin’s discussion with Julia she overheard one day; “she fits in, you know? Never had asked for more or being jealous of Eliot and me. She understands our relationship more than El, and I do, to be honest. It is like she was the glue we needed to be solid and strong. I needed her to accept to be loved by Eliot. To accept to be loved by her. To accept that I am worth being loved.”

Fen would have given everything to see how Eliot, Quentin and Arielle had lived during those years at the impossible puzzle. The way Eliot came back was so drastically different; she knew something there happened that would never happen again. She understood that what happened was Arielle.

Quentin and Eliot had been into each other way before she got married to one of them. From the beginning, it had not been subtle and the fact that, in his worst moment of withdrawal, he could only talk about Margo or Quentin was telling. Plus the way those two idiots were looking at each other was less than subtle. But, without knowing all the details, she knew that Eliot had had a hard love life and was bruised from it; so hurt by it that he was not willing to take a step toward love with his best friend. That would have been such a mess if they would have dated and Eliot had been forced to marry her. Though, she would have told him about the three-way marriage way before.

She understood now that, Arielle was what made Eliot come back with a definite sense of self-worth, of openness to listen, of love, of caring for other than his damned own self. She wasn’t the reason Eliot and Quentin were together, but the way she talked about them made Fen understand she was the missing link they needed to heal both of their wounded soul. And the fact that now Fen was included in this beautiful polyamory family was a blessing of the Gods. Because Quentin was kind and gentle with her, Eliot was listening and caring. Because of Arielle, she was not the wife of an indifferent miserable drunk High King. For the first time since she was married, Fen felt like she belongs somewhere, with someone. Arielle did glue them all together.

And Rupert was just the cherry on top.

“My King?” A voice asked putting Fen’s mind back to the present.

Rafe, Abigail and Heloise were looking at her, waiting for an answer. Fen took a deep breath, blushing at her clear absent mindless. Margo would have probably screamed at her for being distracted like that.

“How many incidents does this add up to?” She asked, trying actively to listen. It was harder than it seemed.  
“With yesterday’s accidental death, fourteen.” Heloise sighed.

The Acting High King bit her lips. This was too many similar incidents in too little time. Something was wrong in the kingdom, and no one could figure what. All they knew is that people were always tired and sleeping and this has caused accident, death and three house fire.

“Then I agree with you we must send a request to every city and ask for a report on everything that happens within the past two months. Maybe we can figure out a pattern somewhere. Abigail, could you contact Humbledrum and the other leaders of the Talking Animals coalition, maybe they have an insight that humans don’t have.”

Race beamed and Abigail nodded before they left for their duties. Heloise excused herself and left for her office so she could send messages to the main town in Fillory. Fen was now alone in the throne room. Usually, Arielle would be there. At this time, Rupert might be around too, getting ready for his nap. The acting High King sighed.

“Would you even bother Margo?” She whispered to herself, speaking into the void. “Would you ask the animals or am I doing too much? Why aren’t you coming back? I thought you wanted the crown.”

For a few minutes, knowing she was alone and far away from the person who would get the most impacted by it, Fen closed her eyes and let herself be fearful and sad. This silence was unusual. Even when they left the castle, Margo and Eliot always made their presence known. Sending messages or giving explicit instruction. And what should have been a few weeks assignment for Fen was now nearly half the year, and there was so much she knew about Margo to represent her.

It was awful sad how much she idolized this strong woman and how Fen always was scared of her. She wanted to be close. Get to know her. Get to know the Margo Eliot was talking about. She saw glimpses of her here and there, and those rare moment where her walls were down were the moment Fen knew she cared deeply about her. But she had no idea what kind of High King Margo would be. After all, she knew her as a High Queen, and the stakes were much different; as a High King, your words mattered. And the last time she had misspoken, the kingdom ended up at war.

Fen was scared of not knowing how Margo would truly reign and her reaction when…if she ever comes back. Would she agree with the decision she had to make, or would she change everything? She knew so little of her and yet had to be her mirror.

What would Margo do?

Take a nap. That’s what she would do. After a long morning in the throne room, it wasn’t rare that Margo would take a nap or a long bath while Eliot was finishing the minute details of his decision before his next appointment. Sometimes he would go rest with her for an hour which had driven Fen insanely jealous at first but now that she knew how to intertwine Margo and Eliot’s life was, she was not jealous at all. Their love was as deep as her love for her family; it was deep and hard to break.

Plus, Eliot liked sleeping with men. Which Margo wasn’t.

As she walked toward her room, an adviser reminded her of the appointment she had with The Library before dinner, and she sighs, rubbing her temple. No wonder Margo needed wine after her laborious days.

“I need to rest to be fully receptive to their margin, when they arrive, please awake me and make them wait in the lounging area. Give them wine and fruits while they wait for my arrival.” Fen said.

The small woman bowed and hurried toward a corridor that was leading to the kitchen, most likely to carry her order.

When she arrived in her bedroom, she only took off her crown before putting her head on the pillow and falling into a deep sleep filled with visions of Margo drowning, Eliot’s head getting cut off, Rupert dying by the fairies hand and Arielle killing herself after seeing this. When a maid awakened her, the Acting High King felt less rested than she was before and had to remind herself that the nightmare had only been the strange way her brain processed her worries.

There was no such thing as dreaming the future. Right? Not for a fallopian anyway… right?

As she took a deep breath, putting back her crown to her head, Fen rose her chin up like Margo had shown her to do. She fixed the small smudge of makeup that the pillow had cheated on her right eye. She took another deep breath.

“You’re strong; you’re dominant; you do not accept no for an answer,” Fen repeated to herself Margo’s last word to her before her departure. She had been doing it every day since she was on the throne.

As she was about to leave, she fixed the cover of her bed, not wanting the maid to work for no reason. It was mostly to make the Library wait because she knew they were hiding the truth about many things and couldn’t trust them fully. That was something Eliot liked to do when he was High King; proving his power by coming late just because he could.

The last pillow placed, she was about to leave the room when her eyes fell on Arielle’s nightstand. Her books were gone with her in the travel, but not Quentin’s dead cellphone. The one with the message for Rupert by his fathers. Fen pinched her lips, narrowing her eyes and grabbed it, an idea in her head.

And walking toward the throne room, she repeated to herself one last time; _You’re strong, you’re dominant, you do not accept no for an answer_


	6. Arielle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bingle takes his duty really seriously, Arielle cuddles Rupert

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for all the kind comment and encouragement. I know this fic is niche and im so happy people like it :3

Sitting in the carriage, looking into the window, Rupert head on her chest as he was sleeping, Arielle became lost in her head. There was no one to see her and no one she had to be strong for. So for the few minutes, it lasted, she let herself think of Quentin, of Eliot, of their small cottage, of her brothers, her sister, her niece and nephews. Everything she had left behind and sacrifice to follow the men she loves and was nowhere to be found. 

She let herself cry silently as she remembers making love to Quentin as dawn was approaching, and his departure was imminent how his body and hers knew every inch and yet wanted to be discovered. How his lips against her convey all the emotion his tortured mind had a hard time saying. Because that was something she learned from living with him and Eliot; his feelings were so big and sometimes overwhelmed him to the point that only small touches and daily gesture could explain. She always loved how he ever tried to take her hand or have his arm around her when they were seated, how he learned to cook her favourite meal, how he had asked Eliot for dance lesson so he wouldn’t embarrass her for their wedding. Quentin was someone who shows his love more than says it. Eliot was even worse with that. 

And right now, she was missing that. The kisses on the forehead, the songs while cooking, the stories from Earth around the fire, the hands undressing her, their collective sigh after making love. Everything. She fucking missed everything about them. 

Sniffling, she pulled Rupert against her a bit more, kissing his head and letting herself cry against him and wanting her son to know his fathers, wanting to go back to something normal. She would never dare to say it to anyone, not even herself. But it this moment, she could not deny it; she regretted coming here. She should have chosen to hide that stupid tile and wait for Rupert to grow up. Wait for them to be a family a bit longer. They were starting to get settled in their life, and everything changed, and now she felt so out of touch with everything. She knew, despite adoring Fen with all her heart, that she would never feel home in Whitespire. 

When she felt the carriage starting to slow, the young woman began to wipe her eyes and took the long strip of fabric she had brought with her to tie her son against her; he was sleeping a lot lately and having him against her was one of the few anchor that was keeping her away from giving up on everything. 

“We are approaching the fairy territory, my lady,” said the man that was head of security for her trip. Bingle, his name was. He had been the security for Eliot and Fen in their first trip for the keys she was told. Fen trusted him with all her heart, so Arielle was too. “You asked to walk there, so we stopped near the censor’s Retreat. It is close enough that if we want to leave quickly, it will not be a hassle, but you will be able to walk there without a problem.”

“Thank you,” Arielle said as he was helping her out of the carriage. With a five months pregnant belly and a sleeping toddler, that hand he landed had made sure she didn’t fell on her back. “You can wait here; I will be back by tomorrow.”

Biggie frown, his brown eyes looking at her with an intensity she rarely saw in a Whitespire guard; this man was not merely working. His duty was to protect her, and she understood that he was taking it very seriously.

“I do not think you going alone; there is a good idea.”  
“High King Fen wants us to come as an ally and in peace, not provoking any aggression that would lead them to wage war on us. “  
“I do not think to have an escort with you will send this message.”  
“Brining prince Rupert with me is supposed to show them that we trust them, even with our children. People have been wary of them toward this subject, especially after the people learn what happen to High King Fen’s daughter. Me coming up with armed guard will show that I do not trust them, worse than I expect them to harm me.”

Arielle and Bingle were walking away from the carriage; the few men that had followed them were getting down from their horses and started to provide food and water for them. It was nice to see that, at least, the castle was treating it’s horses right. It had not been the case with High Queen Yana in her time…at least that what the rumour at the village had been. 

“May I speak freely, my lady.”  
“Of course.” Arielle sigh, giving up on having him drop the formalities and titles when they were alone. 

Bingle took a deep breath, visibly trying to come up with a way to say his feeling and yet being polite. She just had told him he could be truthful to her and again, she could feel he was holding back something. 

“Bingle, whatever you want to say, you can be blunt. I had too many brothers not to be able to take some hits. What is it.”  
“I…” He sighs, visibly more relaxed now. He looked at his men, making sure they were far away enough so they wouldn’t hear him. Then looked at her. “Lady Fen, High King Fen sorry, had told me that you had never expected to be in the Whitespire court. Contrary to her, you were not told the way we work around royalty and me, and my men try to be respectful this.”

The sun was about to set down; the ride had taken all day. The leaders of the fairies were expecting her soon, but at the moment, Arielle felt it was more important to listen to him than any diplomatic mission she had. Was she really that differently acting than the others in the castle? Enough to create concern in the guard? Did Fen knew this or was it the first time he ever dares to tell someone? 

“But?” She prompted. Worried.   
“But we were told to consider you royalty as the same rank as L…High King Fen was when Eliot was High King. And this status means some protocols have to be respected. Royalty coming with guards isn’t showing your power superiority or a lack of confidence. It simply shows that Whitespire values your life. Lives. “ His eyes darted to Rupert, and a small fond smile drew on his lips. “I understand you are not used to the way royalty is handled in Whitespire, and I don’t think Quentin or Eliot prepared you before they went for the final leg of their quest.”

Hearing Bingle talk about her boys made Arielle’s heart get heavier and sadder. This man had spent nearly two years of his life, making sure the children of Earth were safe within his watch. In a sense, he knew more of King Quentin and High King Eliot than any stories they had told her back in the cottage. 

Bingle most likely saw the sadness wash over Arielle’s body because he broke from his formal posture and decided to put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. It was firm; it was strong; it was full of comfort. 

“What I am trying to say,” he said in a kinder and softer voice “is that that you like it or not, you and your son are now one of the most important persons in Fillory, and there are people out there that will want that power for themselves. My job is to make sure they never approach you and that you can continue to talk peace and alliance without worries.”

Arielle bit her lips, nodding. She was not sure if it was the hand on her shoulder, the warm voice or the kindness in his eyes, but she saw her father in Bingle. Her father had always been hard and pushing you toward greatness, but it had always been out of love and care. She had understood that too late in her life. 

Arielle took a deep breath, pushing away the overwhelming sadness she felt coming as the memory of her father was bubbling up in her mind. She would have to unpack those feeling later. Alone. Away from the eyes of the others. 

“Alright.” She conceded. “I understand. May I ask if it is possible to hide your weapons, or at least be subtle with them.”  
“That is a compromise we can make. I will tell my men.”  
“Thank you. “

Bingle bowed and was about to leave but then turned back toward her. 

“You are doing very well, my lady. I come from an orphanage, and I know what it is to look at your position and feeling like you do not belong there. But if the Gods put me here, and brought you with us, it is for a reason.”

It was the first time since she came back that Arielle met someone that was still talking about the Gods and their faith and not scuffing and saying that they were dead. It was such a fantastic thing to hear for the young woman who still silently prayed before each meal and always wanted to believe that even if Umber and Ember were dead, other Gods were looking after them. 

Unable to hide her smile, Arielle nodded, silently asking the Gods, whoever they were, to look after this man and to bless his life. 

“Thank you, Bingle.” She said sincerely. And for the first time since her wedding day, Arielle felt so overwhelmed with emotions that she was not able to speak. So she did what Quentin did at the moment he felt that way and used his touch to say what he couldn’t. Arielle took the head of the guard’s hand and squeezed them hard and strong. He answered back. 

He smiled and turned, most likely going to see his men and prepare their walk toward the Fairy territory. Arielle smiled and felt at peace. He was right. It was time for her to stop mourning the farm girl she uses to be and embrace the lady she had become. She knew she had married kings, and even if she never believe she would have to act upon their status, here she was. 

Being Lady Arielle was the best was she could move forward and continue to hope for Quentin and Eliot return. It would be the best way to honour them. She would make them proud.


	7. Fen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fen is being a High King in a troubled time

Fen looked at her council who had gotten paler by the second and the young girl in front of her. Biting her lips, the Acting High King was asking herself for the hundred times this month when would Margo come back. Taking daily decision for Fillory was easy and would not change history's course; she doubted the crop allowance to poor houses was going to be written in the history book. But what she had to deal with was much more critical; one wrong decision and it could be the end of Margo's reign. It could even mean the end of Fillory.

"Do you know how long the hostilities have been brewing?" She finally asked.

The dark skin girl in front of her shook her head, visibly uncomfortable to be put on the center of the discussions. As her first handmaid and Arielle's helper for Rupert, Olive was used to melting into the shadow, she had learned to make herself invisible and when to leave if the baby was disturbing everyone. But now she had just come back from Loria with news so bad, Arielle had sent her right away to Whitespire; the woman had told her it was more important for the council to know that having help with Rupert during the travel. Fen had to admire Arielle's quick judgement. Not everyone who had sat on this throne would put Fillory before their comfort.

"My family said months. For what I understood, many people were happy about the alliance Eliot, and King Idri had made, and when he marched on Fillory and retracted the peace offering, many people got mad. "  
"Rare are the times when people yearn to go at war." Eloise agreed. "Especially since we had a truce for so long. Our pieces of information had been correct about the positive reaction of Lorians on how the Wellspring battle was resolve."  
"It was High King Eliot's idea not to put his people at war, let's not give Idri that credit." Reminded Tick.

The dry wellspring and Loria's try to acquire it seemed so long ago for Fen, and yet it had only been three years. Thinking of this, of how naive and full of hope, she had been almost breaking her heart. She had learned the hard way that hope can't be tied up with naivety; otherwise you blindly trust people, and they make a useless trade to save someone that ends up costing the life of your baby.

A small hint of sadness crept into Fen's heart, remembering the loss of her daughter. She tried to remind herself that the Gods had still given her a small wonder to love and had brought Rupert into her life. She might not have been the biological mother, but she knew Arielle was making sure she could be a parent to this kid; there might be a thing between a woman who lost a child that no one will ever understand. Arielle was the only one around her that followed not only the sadness, but the emptiness it left in her. And she was trying to filling it with time alone with Rupert.

"Both of our sides could not have been at war for long. Between the magical drought we had and the lack of leadership," she said, making sure to look at Tick whose family had been in power during the crownless years. The little man was purple with silent anger that made her feel a bit better. She was starting to understand Margo's decision to keep him around; reminding him of what he would never have was the best punishment for him. "our population do not have the number for a war. And it is still true today. I refuse to put ourselves in a potential risk of war without the High King's view on the affair."

Acting High King or not, Fen was not sure on the stance of Margo about war. She had been quick to declare it last time but had almost lost Eliot because of it. It seemed the High Queen had been much wiser with diplomacy since that even. Her reactions to the fairy invasion were proof of it.

"Saying nothing is still answering them." Pointed out Tick.  
"Not now, neither Idri or his sister came to us to ask for help or allegiance. Let's make sure to keep it this way." Said Fen, trying to be as confident as Margo would have been. Her palms were sweaty, her heart was beating faster, but that was a thing she could hide from the council. "The more neutral we can be in this civil war, the best we will be. Fillory has enough problems at the moment; let's not put take on our neighbour's as well."

The council understood this as a final decision and a dismiss. They all bowed and left, having work to do and pieces of information to gather about the subject. The war between Princess Ru and King Idri had been a surprise for everyone. Which mean their spies were not doing their work correctly. This had to be addressed.

"Olive can you stay a moment?" Fen asked.

The handmaid who was on her way out turned toward Fen and approach, bowing. That's when Fen realize she was still on the throne, the crown on her head; she might have asked the girl to stay, but it might have been taken as an order. To make sure she was talking to her confidant and not her employee, Fen stood up the throne and walked down the stairs to go in front of Olive.

The young girl was visibly exhausted. She had ridden most of the night and part of the morning, and the moment she arrived at Whitespire, they had ushered her in the council. The debates and discussion had taken hours. Lunch hour was long gone, even Fen could feel the hunger starting to growl in her stomach.

"I won't be long," Fen promised. "Then you can eat and sleep."

Olive smiled, visibly happy that someone saw her effort.

"First, I want to thank you for coming so fast. I know Lady Arielle told her to come here at once, but we would have understood if you wanted to ride at daylight."  
"Thank you, your majesty." Olive beamed.

Fen felt something hot and bubbly inside her. Every time someone called her your majesty, it made her feel like the little girl she uses to be back home. She was five or six the first time she was told she might marry a king and for years she had played in the filed imagining herself as the queen of Fillory, being called your majesty, eating whatever she wanted and having a husband who loved her. Maybe her dream had been tampered by reality, but there was something wonderful to realize that part of her wish did come true; she managed to be the first Fillorian on the throne. She was using every second of it to make it better.

Even the FU Fighter had stopped their aggression towards the thrones when they saw that she was not merely the puppet of Margo and that the change she was making were good for the land and its people.

"On a second note, I would like to have news from Arielle. She sends me news that her talk with the fairy representative had been good."  
"Oh, yes!" agreed Olive. "I was there only a day, but they were planning a meeting between the townspeople and the fairies. She manages to make both of the sides to sit down and listen. It is quite impressive."

It was. Both sides had a very reasonable reason to act the way they were. The Fillorians had been living under a siege of the Fairy, thinking the crown had become careless, and meanwhile, half the population of the fairies were a refugee from Earth and were scared of any human they saw. Anger and fear were the most dangerous emotion a society could have. This is how Loria's civil war had started.

And she will not give Fillory back to Margo when it was on the edge of a war between it citizen after they did the ultimate act of kindness and forgave their enemy and granted them asylum. This had been a decision from Margo that would forever be written in history books, and Fen refused for it to be remembered as a mistake. She wanted people to remember High King Margo as someone who could see the pain in others and act accordingly.

"She told me she would send you news in the morning; it should arrive tonight." Added Olive.

Fen, who was bitting her lips nervously, nodded.

"Do you want me to go back to her?" The handmaid said, sensing the palpable anxiety of the High King. This took Fen back to reality, and she shook her head.  
"Oh!" She exclaimed. "No, no! I am mostly wondering how we could help more. After hearing about Loria, I do not want this restlessness to come into our side of the land."

Olive looked at her, kindly and lovingly, which reminded Fen to breathe. She was so overwhelmed by the situation she had forgotten to do so.

"I think you are doing more than enough right now." Said Olive. "And if I may, I would even say an amazing job. Many people on the road were talking to me about how good it was to have someone from the land on the throne, and that if you were following Margo's advise they would not be scared for the future of the land. Now that magic is back; people are starting to be too busy with their work to think of other things. It is easy to get riled up when what brings food to your table is in danger. Now that it is gone, we need to wait for the end of the storm."

Fen took Olive's hand and squeezed them as hard as she could.

"I missed you. It is nice to have you back in the castle."

***

Later that evening, when Fen went to her bedroom for the night, a redbird was patiently waiting for her on the desk. A letter was still tied to its leg. The Fillorian Red Birds were at this strange line between intelligence and bestiality. They could not talk, and their mind was limited to problems they would have within the month, but further, than that, they were unable to have complex thought or political opinion. They were a fantastic companion and a steady source of communication between people; fillorians never needed bunnies to travel between worlds and most of them were charging too high to deliver messages. Most of them were using the Red Bird.

Excited, Fen almost forgot to thank the animal and decided to take a cup and fill it with water so it could drink while she read. The bird seemed so happy that he let her take the parchment without any protest. After drinking for a long moment, the bird stretches its wing and decided to go in the empty cake near the window where seeds were there for this exact reason; she knew her messenger would eat and stay the night then fly once rested. That was one thing Eliot had put in their room that she loved; he hated to know he was putting a semi-intelligent creature in a cage, and yet, he understood their utility. By giving them the option of coming an going, Whitespire had stopped having a problem to get them to go and deliver messages.

 

_My lady,_

_Things are well in this side of the land. The meeting with the townsfolks and the fairies went so well that I didn't need to mediate and they both agree to have monthly reunion until they felt settled. Plus, they are organizing a special event for the blooming festival since most of the fairies never saw the festival. Having them working together is a fantastic sight._

_Bringing Rupert had been a good idea. To see fairies playing with a human baby (yes, his charm and needs for cuddle have gotten even to them!) made everyone feel a bit safer. I heard a woman scolding a man reminding him that if Whitespire was trusting them with the royal baby, they should too._

_I always knew that, by merely existing, Rupert would change the world. He changed mine anyway._

_We are set to leave soon, but since we are near the centor's retreat centre. Rupert is sleeping a bit too much for my taste, and I am starting to think it's related to all the accident and strange things that have been happening lately. I will ask for their advice. Plus, I want to make sure my pregnancy goes smoothly. Last time I had the luck to have a healer as a good friend, she had checked me up every month to made sure I didn't miscarry. I had wanted to look at for, and since we are near the best healer of Fillory, I will take this opportunity._

_Rupert is getting stronger every day, trying to get up his legs even more. By the end of the months, I think he will walk. Then we will have to chase him running around the castle! I pray the Gods that his fathers will be home for these joyous events._

_I almost finished the book I was reading; I should have listened to you and brought the fourth one._

_We miss you. I miss you._

_With all my love_

_Arielle_

Sitting on the bed, Fen smiled. Happy to have news of the trip and how big her son was growing up. But what made her stomach create small butterflies were those last words. I miss you. And for once, she believed it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! Thank you so much for your patience and encouragement!  
> With love


	8. Arielle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arielle loves Earth cellphone technology

Arielle came back from her trip to the Fairies, and a slight detour to The Retreat, extremely tired, body aching and yet full of pride. She had told herself the whole trip that Quentin and Eliot would be proud of her and would see her efforts, that was the driving force that had made her play the mascarade that was required when you are a Lady of Whitespire. 

She had foolishly hoped her boys would be back when she would be gone. And she tried not to chastise herself too much when she got disappointed that they didn’t. She was trying hard to believe in their return, to believe that the Gods, dead or alive, would not have played a trick so cruel on her; they wouldn’t have allowed that she travel in time and space simply to lose her whole family… wouldn’t they? 

Her prayers were unanswered, her faith silently wavered, but she still sent a bunny every day with Quentin’s and Eliot’s name, hoping that one day, they would not come back without any answers. 

She even had convinced a family of bunny to stay not too far so she could use them daily. They were a hard bargain, but as a merchant herself, she knew how to haggle. In the end, they had their own nest in the royal garden, were provided daily with fresh hay and vegetable and were allowed to hop around the castle without a permission slip. Plus, they could play with Rupert. Her little boy adored the bunnies, and they loved him back. Their friendships were made of hugs and licks and hops. 

Thank the Gods Fen had asked the Librarians if they knew how to charge Quentin’s phone, now that magic was back. Apparently, it was a basic spell, but it made sure that the battery never died. Arielle didn’t care of the why and how of the thing. She had now a way to record their son hopping like the bunnies in the corridor so if - when- his fathers would come back, they would not have missed it. Plus, Rupert could see the video of them signing and telling him to be nice to his mothers-. He asked for it every night before bed. The young mother never said no. 

Time passed. Life went on. Arielle’s belly grew bigger. 

There was a million thing to think and worry about in Whitepsire now; they had the confirmation that there was an opium saturation in the air, causing everyone to have different kind of symptoms. There was a rumour of Umber being back from the dead and seen in the east of the land. Loria was in a full-blown civil war, and it was only a matter of day before Idri imminent fall. The blooming festival was about to begin, and some people believed the Acting King should make an apparition, others fear a coup or an assassination attempt. 

On the last part, Fen had refused for Tick to look into it and had asked Rafe and Abigail to look for any potential plot against the thrones; there was no way the Acting King would put her life security in the hand of a man who had tried to kill Eliot and Margo less than a year ago. 

In the end, the council agreed that showing up to the Blooming Festival was important since the fillorians near the fairies were making an effort to show those festivities to the new citizen of their land. The crown should be seen celebrating as well. So the absence of the true leader didn’t seem to weight on their heart as much as it was. 

Plus, it would be Rupert’s second time, and he’d adore it last year. Well…When they were back in the past. As it been a year since they were gone? How to manage to talk about your past if it feels like months for you but was decades for others?

The only sense of time Arielle really had was her belly. She had learned her pregnancy the day they left for Blackspire. Seven months ago. She prayed the Gods for the quester to be back before the ninth one. What would she do if she gave birth to a child her husband didn’t even know he had?

Last time Eliot had to deliver Rupert into the world. This time, will it be a stranger?

Only Fen’s soft hand on her stomach calmed her down. She loved doing it when they were alone at night, tucked in bed. It was a way for the young woman to participate in the pregnancy, and to remind her that she wasn’t alone. The first time they felt the baby kick together, Fen had cried of happiness, and they had slept together in one of the most passionate sex session they ever had. 

In the end, Rupert and Fen went together to the first day of The Blooming Festival in Brightheaven. The trip to the fairies had exhausted Arielle, and the high level of opium was not helping. Plus the censors had told her to rest as much as she could and not to overwork herself. 

So the mother-to-be spent the day writing the last part of the book that was telling the story of Quentin and Eliot — writing about Margo’s crowning, Rupert’s nomination as heir and how her boys were now gone to Blackspire and still awaited to return. It was faster to do without a baby asking for your attention, but she reminded herself that she was doing it for him. So one day, Rupert would read all the adventures her dads went through and what lead them to come into the past and steal Arielle’s heart while doing an impossible puzzle. 

Knowing that she would be alone for most of the night, Arielle took this moment to hide in the royal bedroom, eat alone and finish to read the Game of Throne series she had started to read. From what she gathered, there was still one book left, and she spent some time trying to find it in the bottomless basket. But it was no-where to be found. She would have to see if she misplaced it somewhere. She needed to know what happens to all of those characters and if her favourites would survive. She particularly loved Arya. 

Fen arrived while Arielle had fallen asleep, in the middle of the night. Her cheek was still pink from the cold air outside and her eyes full of the wonders only a Blooming Festival could bring. She listens to the Acting King description of her day with their son as she was undressing and getting ready for bed. Then they look at the picture of Rupert and her she had taken with Quentin’s cellphone. There was one with the chubby hand of the prince extended to touch one of the glowing and opening flower that became one of her favourite picture of him ever taken. 

Rupert started to walk the day after. Fen thought of capturing it on the cellphone as Arielle was hugging her son fiercely and Olive was beaming with pride. 

Thank Gods for Earth technology. Thank Gods for the magic to make it work in Fillory.


	9. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arielle negotiate with a bunny

Arielle was holding Rupert against her, rocking him slowly after he was woken up by a thunderstorm. As she was already awake to pee, the fillorian had told Olive to go back to bed, and she took care of her son. As much as she liked sleeping a bit more, she always loved those moments in a rocking chair, holding him against her, watching his eyes slowly closing. It was a bit harder now that her belly was showing, her eighth months of pregnancy were showing more than ever. But Rupert always found a way to cuddle against her chest. Even right now, as he was holding Quentin’s phone and listening to his father sing him a lullaby, his head was near her heart, and he moved slightly to get more comfortable. 

As the song finished, Arielle took the phone from her toddler and prayed any Gods alive or dead to bring back her husband and his partner. She needed them. Rupert needed them. And they needed to know about the child that was due in only a few weeks. 

Would the Gods be so cruel that the cost of bringing magic back was to be cut from their family forever?

Yawning, she looked outside and saw that dawn was approaching, but at least the storm had passed. If they were lucky, Rupert would get a few more hours of sleep. 

Slowly and carefully, she went to her son’s bed and tucked him in, making sure his favourite plushie was next to him; the big brown bear Eliot had brought for him a few days after she had given birth. Rupert took the bear in his arm and crushed it with a hug while sleeping, a smile of reassurance lightning up his face. Arielle’s heart exploded. He was Quentin’s son for sure; they had the same sleeping smile. 

As she was getting out of the room, she saw the youngest bunny of the family who resided in the royal garden. 

‘’ Sorry Pom Pom, Rupert is still sleeping, you can play later.’’ She said, bending down as much as she could to pet her. 

Pom Pom was visibly disappointed and thumped of disapproval, but nothing some excellent scratch behind the ear couldn’t fix. 

‘’How about this; come during breakfast time. I need someone to send the letter, and when you are done, I will have fed Rupert and you two could play together.’’

Pom Pom agreed. Arielle went back to bed, next to Fen who didn’t even notice any movement in the beds. 

The Acting High King woke up earlier that day to have a meeting with the council, and there was already a report of an arrest at the border of the caste. But Arielle fell asleep as the guard was giving a quick summary to Fen and the expecting mother went back to sleep rather rapidly. It was finally Rupert and Olive who woke her up. Since Rupert had started to walk, he loved running from the door to her bed and pull on the sheets until she wakes up. That, she was sure, was taken from Eliot’s side of the family. 

Arielle dressed up with the help of Olive, Rupert made sure to have his say in what to wear by looking at her shoe option and pointing of the one he wanted her to wear. At least, today he had decided on something comfortable that could fit with her outfit; and at his age, Arielle was not sure if Rupert was starting to get good at styling or that only had been a lucky guess. 

In the breakfast room, Pom Pom and her brother Bundle were eating near the table, which delighted Rupert. After this, it was easy to bribe her child into finishing his meal so he could have some bunny cuddling time. 

‘’You know the drill. Try to bring this to Eliot or Quentin first. If you can find them, try Margo, Julia, Kady, Josh or Penny. Thank you for doing this.’’

Pom Pom rolled her eyes, it was not her first delivery attempt, and it was always the same thing anyway. But Arielle couldn’t stop trying to reach them. She had to continue to hope. So she put a letter that she had re-written and re-work hundreds of times in the paws of the bunny who licked her hand and left to do her deliveries. Everyone knew it would take about ten minutes, and she would come back saying she could not find any of them. 

But Arielle had to try. And when she couldn’t, Fen tried. They have not skipped a day since the Muntjac came back empty. 

So Arielle started to eat and gave Rupert his breakfast. She made sure he was eating it and not smashing it around his high chair because the last thing she wanted is bunny playtime turned into a drama because he was hungry. And Olive was good and coaxing him to try to eat with wooden spoons and forks now. 

Ten minutes passed. 

Then twenty. 

Then Rupert went with Olive to get dressed and play with the bunny family in the royal garden, as promised. But Pom Pom was still not there, not even when Arielle walked out of the kitchen and started her duty of the day. 

She barely listens a maid telling her Fen was working with a woman they had arrested earlier that had the means to fix the opium problem in the air. Her heart started to beat so fast her chest started to hurt. Was the long wait a good or a bad thing?

The wait was long, too long. And the anxiety creeping into the expecting mother had her stop pretending she was cleaning and restocking the armoury, and she went to lie down for a moment. When she opened the door to the royal bedroom, Pom Pom was there. She was excited, beaming… and didn’t have the letter with her. 

‘’Will Explain, love Julia.’’

Arielle took the bunny into her arm, trembling, and made her repeat the words over and over. 

Julia was alive. Julia had an answer. She might finally know what happen to the quester after they left to save magic, eight months ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here another fic done in this insane series I had started. Soon will come a WHOLE NEW FIC with all of s04 and the what if that Arielle, Rupert and baby #2 will bring with it. 
> 
> I can't wait to show you what I have in mind
> 
> Thank you for your patience and encouragement. 
> 
> Love, Cath

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, comments and kudos are my bread and butter!


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